Compensation element, method and system for the active damping of a medium

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a compensation element for actively damping vibrations of a medium, in particular a fluid. The compensation element comprises a hollow body having an internal volume, with a compensation volume being formed in the internal volume, with the hollow body also having at least two openings which connect the compensation volume to a fluid conduit that is used to supply and discharge the medium, wherein the compensation element is separable from the fluid conduit in a non-destructive manner, and at least one actuator which can increase or decrease the compensation volume during operation.

1 . A compensation element for actively damping vibrations of a medium, comprising:
 a hollow body having an internal volume, with a compensation volume being formed in the internal volume, with the hollow body further having at least two openings which connect the compensation volume to the environment; and   at least one actuator which can increase or decrease the compensation volume during operation.   
     
     
         2 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the medium comprises a fluid in gaseous or liquid form, in particular a liquid fluid having a compression modulus under normal pressure at 0.1 MPa and at a temperature of 10° C. of at least 1.0·10 9  Pa. 
     
     
         3 . The compensation element of  claim 2 , wherein the fluid comprises aggressive or corrosive gases or liquids, in particular a demineralized water having a conductivity of 1-50 μS/cm. 
     
     
         4 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the medium is accommodated in a fluid conduit, in a piping system, in a hydraulic line, in a pressure line, or in a container or vessel. 
     
     
         5 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein the openings of the compensation element are connected to the fluid conduit in a force-fitting and/or form-fitting manner, wherein the medium can pass or flow from the fluid conduit into the compensation volume during operation. 
     
     
         6 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein the compensation element is separable from the fluid conduit in a non-destructive manner. 
     
     
         7 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein the compensation element can be connected or is directly connected to a machine, an installation component or equipment, wherein the connection is adapted so as to be separable in a non-destructive manner. 
     
     
         8 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein the connection between the compensation element and the fluid conduit is fluid-tight. 
     
     
         9 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein a first opening of the hollow body is connected to at least a portion of the fluid conduit which is exposed to pressure fluctuation, and/or wherein a second opening of the hollow body is connected to the fluid conduit. 
     
     
         10 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one actuator is arranged outside the internal volume of the hollow body. 
     
     
         11 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one actuator is arranged inside the internal volume of the hollow body. 
     
     
         12 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , wherein, during operation, the at least one actuator is able to change a size of the compensation volume by a stroke movement, as a function of pressure fluctuations in the fluid conduit. 
     
     
         13 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one actuator comprises an actuator based on a magnetic principle, piezo principle, or electrostatic principle, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one actuator comprises an actuator including a piezoelectric material, wherein the actuator is protected against aggressive or corrosive fluids, preferably by a coating. 
     
     
         15 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the internal volume is divided into two partial volumes by a flexible diaphragm, whereby an additional balancing volume is defined in addition to the compensation volume. 
     
     
         16 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , further comprising a pressure body is movable by the at least one actuator to thereby act on the flexible diaphragm. 
     
     
         17 . The compensation element of  claim 4 , further comprising at least one pressure sensor for determining a total pressure, inside at least one opening of the hollow body, and/or inside the fluid conduit. 
     
     
         18 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein at least one force sensor is provided, which measures the force acting on the actuator by the compensation element. 
     
     
         19 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein control of the compensation element is accomplished according to a feedback control procedure or according to feed forward procedure involving feedforwarding of a disturbance variable. 
     
     
         20 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein a flow rate of the medium is taken into account for controlling the compensation element. 
     
     
         21 . The compensation element of  claim 1 , wherein the hollow body has an internal volume is provided by a fluid conduit. 
     
     
         22 . The compensation element of  claim 21 , wherein a change in volume is caused by the at least one actuator through a substantially radial deflection of the fluid conduit as a whole or by deflection of only one wall of the fluid conduit during operation. 
     
     
         23 . The compensation element of  claim 22 , wherein the fluid conduit is adapted so as to be flexible along its longitudinal extension, and the change in volume is caused by an axial change in length of the fluid conduit. 
     
     
         24 . A method for actively damping vibrations of a medium comprising the steps of:
 providing a compensation element;   capturing a total pressure of a medium in a fluid conduit using a pressure sensor;   determining an inlet side pressure difference ΔP in  to a predefined pressure P;   calculating an input value for an electrical parameter, in particular for an electrical voltage, for an actuator, and transmitting the input value to the actuator; and   using the actuator to change a compensation volume on a basis of the input value to decrease or increase the compensation volume in such a way that the pressure difference can be compensated for by the change in volume.   
     
     
         25 . A system for actively damping vibrations of a viscous medium, configured for performing a method according to  the preceding claim . 
     
     
         26 . A system for controlling a mass flow rate of a medium, comprising a compensation element according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 26 , wherein the system is used for dosing fluids or for mixing fluids. 
     
     
         28 . A machine, installation or other equipment, comprising a compensation element according to  claim 1 .